Brought to the street by the owners behind Poutini’s House of Poutine, (1112 Queen at Dovercourt) and Hawker Bar (164 Ossington), Katie is the manager and friendly face you’ll often see accepting orders at Bobbie Sue’s Mac + Cheese (162 Ossington, #3).
From our first taste, we knew we’d (unfortunately) have to limit our visits as our waistlines would otherwise surge larger. But in a neighbourhood with (unfortunately) limited late night options, it’s absolutely a go-to and one we’ve treated out-of-town guests to, with rave reviews. (Door Belle’s pick: Curry-in-a-hurry, a lighter-tasting plate with tuna, green peas and mild curry sauce.)
Door Belle rang-up Katie to learn a little more about her, the business and its place on Ossington:
What were you doing before opening Bobbie Sue’s Mac + Cheese ?
I was actually practicing as a lawyer! While I have always helped with the family businesses, we made some ambitious plans for this year, and I decided it would be better to help out full-time.
What was the inspiration behind Bobbie Sue’s Mac + Cheese?
We love good comfort food and realized that it’s a dish that everyone loves, but that rarely gets the spotlight, at least in Toronto. A couple of places were doing only mac and cheese in New York, so we went and did our research!
Why did you choose Ossington for your location?
The space actually became available before the idea. We also own Hawker Bar next-door, so when Philip Sparks clothing shop moved-out we thought that a take-out place would do really well, given how busy Ossington is. There are a lot of restaurants, but not a lot of quick-service places, so we thought there was a niche that could be filled.
How did you come up with the name?
Bobbie Sue is a cow in the Ottawa Valley. We loved her name, adopted her as our mascot and thought she was a great emblem for the kind of dairy-focused mecca we wanted to create.
What’s your favourite Bobbie Sue’s Mac + Cheese you make? Why?
It varies everyday! But one of my favourites is definitely the Camp Mac – featuring hot dogs and yellow mustard. I used to love hot dog “coins” in my KD as a kid, and then the yellow mustard in ours really kicked it up a notch. I find there’s something very nostalgic about mac and cheese, so with a lot of our menu we tried to make dishes that feel like home.
Aside from your own business, where on Ossington do you like to drink or eat?
Firstly, Hawker Bar (totally biased). But it’s my second home, as my friends work there, eat there and the food is among my favourites. I also love Union and spend many a Monday night there.
What’s the best part of working on Ossington?
It’s such a small community – we got to know the people who live here and work here within the first couple weeks of opening. It is great to have that feeling of closeness – it feels even better that we’ve created a product that has had quite a bunch of neighbourhood people coming back for seconds – and thirds!
How’s business?
Weekends are awesome for us, and we also have an after-school dinner rush which is AWESOME. Poutini’s was our first restaurant, so we were used to only serving food after 1 a.m. It’s great that mac and cheese is something that people like to eat during the day. On that note, we’ll be adding daytime hours and Mondays in the near future, as well as delivery!
Hours:
Monday: closed; Tuesday-Friday: 5 p.m. to midnight; Saturday: noon-midnight; Sunday: noon to 11 p.m.
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Door Belle 